As the calendar turns a page, it’s a time not just for resolutions and fresh starts but also for reflection. Looking back on the accomplishments of the past year at Holy Cross Medical Center brings a sense of pride in the services and support provided to our community. From the Holy Cross Benefit Navigation program, assisting countless individuals in understanding and securing health insurance, to the Children’s Trust Fund program’s nurturing of over 120 families through an array of classes and support groups, the strides made are truly remarkable. Taos Cancer Support Services stood as a pillar of strength for 181 community members affected by cancer in 2023. The First Steps program, dedicated to early childhood development, reached 260 families through 2,010 home visits, fostering a positive foundation for our youngest community members. Taos Alive continued its invaluable work in preventing substance use among Taos County youth, engaging with over 3,000 community members. Additionally, the Rural OB Access & Maternal Services program continued to improve maternal care in rural areas, leveraging telehealth to bridge gaps in access and support for expecting mothers. As we embark on the new year, it’s with a sense of gratitude and determination that we encourage continued engagement with these vital resources that Holy Cross Medical Center proudly offers to our community.
Benefit Navigation
The Benefit Navigation program of Holy Cross Hospital is here to help the citizens of our community understand their health insurance enrollment options and provide application assistance. The services of this program are absolutely free and can help you better understand your insurance benefits as well as help you understand what insurance you are eligible for. Megan Lopez is the new Benefit Navigator and is here to assist people with education, applications, and health insurance enrollments. If you need support signing up for health insurance or have questions about the system, call Benefit Navigation at (575) 751-5848.
Children’s Trust Fund
The Children’s Trust Fund program offers free classes and groups to support parenting. All classes are offered in English and Spanish and they collaborate with various agencies in the community to make sure families are connected to services. In 2023 the program was able to provide classes and services to over 120 families through 12 classes, 2 monthly support groups, 2 healthy snack classes, 1 cooking class, and a Parenting with Emotional Intelligence community building activity that consisted of skill building to cope with the challenges of parenting. Contact Carla to register for our free classes: (575) 751-8904 or email cvigil@taoshospital.org
Taos Cancer Support Services
The Taos Cancer Support Services (TCSS) program exists to serve the needs of people with cancer in the greater Taos area, and provide non-medical support to ease the burden and promote healing. The team can connect individuals with trusted local, state, and national services to help meet basic needs, ease stress, and promote healing while also supporting tangible needs that arise due to treatments being outside of our local community. This year TCSS has been able to support 181 community members struggling with cancer and have provided over 1,011 encounters of supportive care over the year. TCSS is funded by grants, donations, and fundraising. Thanks to the generous support from our community, the team was able to raise close to $102,395 dollars from donations and grants this year. These donations support people impacted by cancer in the Taos area. Find information at www.TaosCancerSupport.org
First Steps
The First Steps program provides free home visiting services to parents of children ages prenatal to five, including fathers, adoptive parents, and foster families in Taos, northern Rio Arriba, and western Colfax counties. Home visiting services provide parents with information, support, and access to resources in our community that promote early childhood development and a positive family foundation. In 2023 the team at First Steps provided support for approximately 260 families and provided over 2,010 home visits. There are currently eight home visitors on their team. Five of the eight home visitors are bilingual, and they have been able to provide hybrid service throughout the year to meet the needs of as many families as possible. First Steps has also partnered with the Taos library to provide an English Storytime on Thursdays and a Bilingual Storytime on Mondays for families. Our goal is for all families in our community to have access to the services they need to support them as they raise their family. www.TaosFirstSteps.org
Taos Alive
The award-winning Taos Alive Coalition unites the community to plan and implement strategies that prevent and reduce substance use and its consequences among Taos County youth. In 2023 Taos Alive provided in-school Botvin Life-Skills education to over 2,500 students in schools through-out the county and also provided the broader public with training on opioid overdose response and the use of Narcan. Taos Alive understands that involvement in positive activities helps greatly to reduce youth substance use and for that reason they provide activity enrollment support as well. Taos alive would like to remind families that the influence of adults in the lives of children is huge. Please set a healthy example for your youth. You are their superhero. www.TaosAlive.org
Rural OB Access & Maternal Services (ROAMS)
The ROAMS program was one of the first awardees in the country for the Rural Maternity & Obstetrics Management Strategies 2019 pilot program funded by Human Resource Services Administration and Federal Office of Rural Health Policy. ROAMS Obstetric (OB) telehealth and maternal support services showed promising results in improving OB medical access and overcoming Social Determinants of Health for rural mothers and their children. The ROAMS Community Health Workers served 325 clients and the Lactation Counselors served 300 new mothers and their babies at no charge. In addition to maintaining the existing services through 2024, ROAMS will set up two Tele-Maternal Fetal Medicine (Tele-MFM) services from Taos and Raton, so that rural mothers can access their high-risk specialist from nearby OB clinics, rather than driving every month to Santa Fe or Albuquerque. www.roamsnm.org
Holy Cross Medical Center is honored to offer all of these free programs and services to the community. If you or someone you know could benefit from these programs, you can learn more at HolyCrossMedicalCenter.org